Don't Forget the Sun
by Very happy randomness fairy
Summary: When a new powerful, dark spirit awakens, an ever growing darkness starts spreading over the world. Korra is going to need the help of Jinora to understand what is happening in the Spirit World, and how to defeat this new threat. / Pumping all my kainora feels into this!
1. Chapter 1 Thunder

**Don't forget the sun **

A/N: Hi! I'm going to try and write a fanfic again. *laughs nervously*. I feel like the Kainora fandom lacks some epic, dark adventure stuff, so here goes - in hopes that it'll prepare me for my script writing class. Any feedback is greatly appreciated. Hope someone finds this intriguing! _I should also mention that it is now past three in the morning, and I don't know what I am doing anymore. _

_Officially disclaiming any ownership of anything_

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**Chapter 1. Thunder**

Embraced by the never ceasing warmth of the spirit world, Jinora sighed happily. The air was sweet. The scents surrounding her melted into a mellow aroma that calmed her. When she opened her eyes, however pleasing the bright colors and the soft lights were, she could not help but to huff in disappointment.

She was back in the spirit world, a place of endless possibilities and wonders, but yet again she was there alone.

She closed her eyes, took a deep breath and, with a frown on her face, she was back in the pavilion on the Air Temple Island. The sound of the waves on the sea and the wind in the trees used to be calming, but nothing could calm Jinora when her boyfriend still was not taking his meditation seriously.

'Kai, are you even trying?' she asked, with a forced, light hearted voice.

His eyes snapped open and he jerked up in a upright position. Jinora groaned as she realized he had fallen asleep. A_gain. _

'I am!' he said. It was not too convincing though, as he started rubbing the sleep out of his eyes.

'I've been into the Spirit World and back already. What have you done?' she asked and crossed her arms over her chest.

'I did have a really nice dream,' he said with a cheeky grin. Jinora silently cursed him. He was always sweet, but when she got mad at him he always got charming, which usually sent all Jinora's defenses shattering in a heartbeat.

_Not this time. _

'Kai, honestly,' Jinora started.

'Common, it was about you,' he cut her off.

He untangled his legs and scooted closer to her on the floor. Jinora rolled her eyes. She fought the smile that was pulling at her lips. It got harder as the faint scent of him filled the air.

'It was in the middle of the night and there was a thunder storm. You got afraid so I had to hold you all night,' he said and leaned closer, trying to land a kiss on her lips. Jinora turned away ever so slightly.

'I'm not afraid of thunder,' she said and got up. She dusted off of her legs and stretched. The sun was starting it's decent behind the mountains in the west.

'I'm sorry, okay?' Kai said and got up himself. He towered a whole head over her now. He always seemed to be leaning into her when they were together. Jinora never minded the closeness, but it always made it harder to keep her hands off him. 'I just get so restless, you know? I miss being out on peace missions.'

'You miss the war?' Jinora asked in disbelief.

'I just miss the adventures,' he said and grinned.

'You're an air bender, silly. You're supposed to like peace and quiet,' Jinora said and punched him weakly in the chest. She regretted it the moment her hand made contact with his toned torso. She stepped back and cleared her throat. 'I just really want you to see it with me.'

She met his brilliant green eyes and sighed. What was she gonna do with him?

He cupped her face in his hands. His touch was warm and instantly sent hundreds of butterflies fluttering inside of her.

'I'm gonna try harder tomorrow,' Kai said quietly and kissed her softly.

'You always say that,' Jinora said, before he landed one more kiss on her lips.

'_Man_, I can't go anywhere on this island without having my eyes scorched by kissing!' the not-so-delicate voice of Meelo cut through the air like a chainsaw.

The two of them parted abruptly. Jinora had to reach far into her air bender soul to remain calm.

'Meelo, why?' she muttered under her breath.

'I take it Bolin is here?' Kai said and grinned from ear to ear.

'Yes. Everyone is inside. They want you to come as well,' Meelo said, annoyed to be sent as messenger.

'Why?' Jinora asked, getting a bad feeling.

'I didn't get all the details. Something about eternal darkness and the end of the world, I think,' Meelo said, nonchalantly.

Jinora groaned. Kai chuckled under his breath and dragged her along.

'You're so cute,' he whispered and put his hand on the small of her back.

'Shut up,' Jinora said, feeling her cheeks burn.

* * *

Inside, everyone was gathered in the living room. On the couch sat Bolin with his arm wrapped tightly around Opal. He only got up to give Kai a bear hug, swing him around a couple of times, comment on how big he had gotten (even though it had only been a week since they last saw each other) and ruffle Jinora's hair slightly.

Next to him was Mako, sitting with his legs crossed, looking pretty gloomy. In the second couch sat Asami, with a cup og tea in her hands. Korra and Tenzin was standing on the floor in a heated discussion about the issue at hand. Jinora felt the bad feeling tug at her heart when she saw the expression on Korra's face when they first stepped into the room. The avatar put on a smile when she greeted them, but Jinora recognized the worry underneath it.

'What is going on?' she asked hesitantly as she and Kai sat down next to Asami.

'There is a rumor that a storm is brewing in the Southern parts of the Earth nation,' Tenzin said and hesitated for a moment. '… and they say it is _growing_. It will cover the entire Earth Kingdom, and Republic City, in a matter of weeks.'

'Don't you think it's true?' Jinora asked.

'What's so bad about a storm?' Kai shot in.

'Tenzin,' Korra started, rather accusingly, 'thinks it's just fuss from a bunch of fanatics in the south. I, on the other hand, think a land covered in darkness for over a week, is pretty avatar-worthy business.'

'We don't know if it is a spirit storm yet, Korra. I think you are underestimating the rest you need after -' Tenzin tried. Korra would not have it.

'I've had plenty of rest!' she said, gaining a quiet giggle from Asami.

Tenzin sighed and put his hand to his temple. Jinora suspected Korra was giving him a headache again. In an attempt to pull herself together, Korra took a deep breath and lowered her voice.

'It's been five months, Tenzin. I'm well rested; and if something is scaring people, I want to check it out personally.'

'Ehm, just for the people here that _potentially_ don't know… What in the name of all things holy is a spirit storm?' Bolin asked, rubbing his chin dramatically.

'It's a disturbance in the Spirit World that reflects upon our world,' Jinora said automatically. Next to her Kai smirked knowingly. She suspected that he knew exactly what she was going to say next, yet she could not stop it from coming out. 'I've read about it.'

A deep blush spread across her cheeks.

'Will it have any effect on us?' Mako asked, turning from Jinora to Tenzin.

'It depends on the situation in the Spirit world. Legends have it that there was a storm once, so powerful that split the continents, but there is no proof that it is true,' Tenzin said, pulling at his beard.

'There is no proof of an ancient, gigant lion turtle either, but _that_ your buying,' Korra mumbled sourly.

'There is proof!' Tenzin half shouted, hands balling into fists.

'Why don't we just head into the spirit world and see if anything is happening ourselves?' Jinora asked hurriedly, hoping to stop them before another argument broke loose.

'I've already checked. I can't find anything. None of the spirit animals have noticed anything either,' Korra said, throwing her arms out in frustration.

'Which means it is _not_ a spirit storm,' Tenzin said.

'Maybe it is a spirit trapped in our world that is trying to get home but it can't so it is upset and that is why there is a storm because the spirits negative energy is messing up the balance in our nature,' Ikke said in one breath.

'Spirits don't really have that issue, Ikki,' Jinora said, eying her father to check her facts. He nodded approvingly.

'Talking about it isn't going to solve it. We can use one of future industry's airships to go down there and see for ourselves,' Asami said, putting her cup of tea down on the table. 'We could leave tomorrow if you want,' she said as she got up.

Korra smiled warmly as Asami approached her.

'Thank you,' Korra said, and turned to face Tenzin. 'Please, come with us. I'd feel a lot more confident if I had your guidance,' she said.

Tenzin sighed the worlds longest sigh, but Jinora knew already before he said anything that he would agree. There was very few things he could deny Korra.

'Fine,' he said.

Korra launched herself at him. His face became visibly paler as she squeezed the living daylight out of him.

'Ooh, field trip! Can I come too?' Bolin asked with a childish excitement.

'Oh, me too!' Kai shot in, eying Bolin with an eager grin.

Jinora was instantly struck by the feeling of being left behind.

'The more the merrier,' Korra said, before Tenzin had the chance to say no.

Jinora looked from Kai to Korra, and realized that if she did not want to be left behind, she would have to act fast.

'Dad, can I -'

'Jinora, I need you to stay on the island and watch over everyone,' Tenzin said with a fatherly pride.

Jinora quieted down at once. Tenzin was incredibly proud of his eldest daughter being an air bending master, but Jinora had learned that all the responsibilities that followed the title, was not always to her advantage, and never to be taken lightly.

Fifteen minutes of planning followed, where Jinora did not say much. Everyone except her, her siblings and Opal was going. She was pretty sure Kai had not even thought about how many days this trip would take. How many days she would have to be without him.

When they all finally finished up Jinora pulled him out on the balcony and closed the door behind them to make sure no one was listening. The air was cooler now and faint glimmering stars were starting to appear on the dark sky.

'What's wrong?' Kai asked, sliding his fingers in between hers gingerly.

'Are you gonna go with them even though I can't?' Jinora asked hurriedly. She knew her worry was showing in her expression, but there was no way to hide it.

'I-I really want to, Jin,' Kai said and stroked the back of her hand with his thumb. 'But it won't be too long. Only a week.'

'That is a long time for me,' Jinora said and hung her head in defeat.

'Hey, common,' Kai murmured and wrapped his arms around her. She nuzzled her face into the crock of his neck and wrapped her arms around his waits. 'We've been together for a long time now. And we've been apart for way longer periods than this. It'll be fine.'

'You better practise your meditation while you're down there,' Jinora muttered against his collarbone.

He only chuckled in reply; his way of responding without committing to anything. Jinora let it pass for now. She closed her eyes and enjoyed the closeness.

* * *

Jinora left her window cracked open that night, allowing the sound of the sudden rain to lull her into an uneasy sleep. She kept waking up by the slight movement of her curtains, only to find out it was just the wind. When she finally turned to face the wall instead, the faintest sound caused her to jump upright in her bed.

_Jinora… _

She stared out into her room. It was too dark to see much. She sat there, completely frozen for what felt like several minutes, until she was absolutely certain it must have been a dream, or her imagination. She turned towards the wall again, about to lie down when she suddenly stared into her own eyes.

Another Jinora was sitting in her bed, with dark eyes and pale skin. It was like looking into a mirror. Only, she had a bleeding gash across her chest. Jinora jumped back and knocked her bedside lamp over in the process. In her hands, the other Jinora was holding her own, still beating, heart. Blood was dripping into the bed, soaking the white beddings. The black stains grew larger and larger, until Jinora could not get away from them anymore.

She woke up to the sound of thunder. There was a moment of complete confusion and terror, before she realized that she was on the floor, and that there was no one else in the room. The lamp was on the floor along with her and all her beddings. She jumped to her feet as a lighting flashed across the sky, lighting up her room for a moment.

She had to take a minute to collect herself. What was going on with her tonight? She rubbed her eyes and her face for a long time, but there was a tenseness in her whole body that would not seem to fade. In her desperation for sleep, she stumbled out of her bedroom, down the hallways and out across the yard and into the building where the other air bender's sleeping quarters were. Kai had been granted his own bedroom two years ago, which Jinora visited quite often, but nearly never at night time.

She knocked ever so softly and slipped inside his bedroom without waiting for him to answer. He was a heavy sleeper. She crossed the room and sat down on his bed. When that did not wake him, she gently nudged his shoulder. He stirred and managed to crack one eye open.

'Jinora?' he aksed groggily.

'Can I sleep here?' she whispered.

'Sure,' he said.

He looked confused, but mostly tired. Jinora was not even sure if he was awake when he lifted the covers for her to slip under. He wrapped his arm around her and pressed her back against his bare chest. She would probably be blushing, had she not been so shaken after her nightmare.

It took only a couple of moments for her to relax in his arms. The sound of his steady breath, and the knowledge that she was not alone in the room, made her relax enough to start feeling sleepy again.

'Not afraid of thunder, huh?' Kai mumbled against her neck. Jinora breathed a soundless laugh. She let it pass for now. She closed her eyes and enjoyed the closeness.

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**If you made it down here I LOVE YOU. **

Any feedback would really help me. Thank you and goodnight xx


	2. Chapter 2 Reflection

**A/N: **Hi! Thank you so much for the positive feedback! Now, let's see if I can possibly keep this going. Also, I'm sorry if this get's really dark. I have no control once I get started..!

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**Chapter 2. Reflection**

Jinora woke up slowly as pale sunbeams peered through the curtains. She felt disoriented for a short moment, before she felt his breath on her neck and his arm hanging limply over her waist. She was never one to snooze off, but this moment was one she wanted to linger in for a little longer.

Naturally though, it could not last forever. A feeling of uneasiness filled her once she remembered exactly why she was in Kai's bed, and not her own. The image of herself covered in blood was still clear in her mind, along with the _smell_ of it. She covered her lips with her hand. Was she shaking? Why would she dream something like that?

She sat up abruptly, tearing the sheets off of Kai. He woke up with a groan and just lay there for a moment. Jinora put a hand to her chest, right above her heart. It hurt.

"Good morning, miss not-afraid-of-thunder," Kai mumbled.

He rubbed his face violently while yawning. He was very tired in the mornings, but not too tired to pull off a goofy smile.

"It wasn't the thunder," Jinora said and looked at him over her shoulder. "It was a dream I had."

"A nightmare?" he asked and pushed himself up on his elbows. His smile was gone once he saw her. Jinora suspected she bore traces of her restless night on her face. She rubbed her face a little to try and gain some color back.

"Yeah. I actually fell out of my bed," Jinora said and forced a laugh.

"What was it about?" Kai asked, stroking her back lovingly.

Jinora blinked rapidly as she tried to remember the details. They made her feel dizzy. She glanced back at him. He was watching her with sleepy, green eyes. His hair was even more tousled than usual. When did he even get this handsome? She pulled her knees up to her chest and turned away.

"You don't want to hear it," she said.

He scoffed and sat up, wrapping his arm around her shoulders. Jinora tried not to notice his bare upper body too much.

"I think I can take a nightmare, Jin," he said and squeezed her shoulder. "You can tell me."

She flashed him a smile. "Thank you, Kai. But I don't want to talk about it right now," she said and gave him a peck on the cheek. He eyed her suspiciously, but, thankfully, he let it go.

Jinora expertly snuck back to her own bedroom. It only took some sneaking around corners, and a short climb up the wall and through her window. She washed up and changed quickly, giving herself no time to dwell on the dream.

"Jinora, I was about to come get you," Pema said as Jinora sat down by the table in the kitchen. She was in the midst of wiping Rohan's face. Around the table sat Ikki and Meelo, both of them eyed her suspiciously.

"Sorry. I didn't sleep well," Jinora said, avoiding eye contact with anyone.

Ikki was like a lie detector when it came to her older sister, and Jinora knew it. Not to mention how often Meelo would burst out with inappropriate comments about Kai and her around the dinner table. It was best not to take any chances. Especially as she could feel both their eyes glued to her as she ate.

"Where's dad?" Jinora asked.

"Preparing the airship," Pema said.

Jinora glanced up for just a second and that was enough.

"Ooh, someone is mad cause her boyfriend is leaving," Meelo laughed, pointing at her with his yoghurt spoon.

"Are you afraid that he's gonna have so much fun out in the world that he won't want to come back again?" Ikki asked sweetly. It was supposed to be a joke, but Jinora found herself unable to laugh it off.

"He wouldn't do that, you little -"

"Jinora," Pema said sternly. Jinora looked away. "Be nice to each other. All of you."

Jinora fell silent the rest of the meal. She still did not feel well after the night and she noticed that her mother knew something was up. Which was why she knew she was in for a pep talk when Pema asked her to stay and help her do the dishes when they had finished eating.

"But, mom, I have to go say goodbye," Jinora tried, advancing ever so slightly towards the hallway.

"You still have an hour before they leave, honey. You have time to help your mother," Pema said and handed her a cloth.

With a sigh she bit her teeth together and started drying off the dishes as Pema cleaned them in the sink.

"Are you upset that you have to stay, honey?" Pema asked eventually.

"No, it's fine," Jinora said, though she dried the dishes a little more aggressively.

"Then what is bothering you?" Pema asked, turning to face her daughter. Jinora had always been good tempered and gentle, but the teenage years had brought with them a few changes; secrecy and a slight impatience was two of them.

Jinora reached out and took the cleaned plate out of her mother's hand. "I'm just grumpy cause I didn't get enough sleep," she said. Pema leaned onto the counter and gave her daughter a knowing smile.

"You sure about that?" Pema asked.

Jinora just smiled back, nodded her head and left the kitchen without another word. She loved her mother to bits, but there was just certain things she did not want to discuss with her parents. Her relationship with Kia was one of those things.

"He's crazy about you, honey," Pema called after her as she escaped into the hallway. Jinora stifled a groan and went outside.

The airship stood ready for departure down by the docks. Jinora made sure to say goodbye to everyone else first, saving Kai for last. She gave her father a long hug, after receiving a long list of things she already knew she needed to do while he was gone. He chuckled when she finished his sentence for him, followed by a impatient 'I know, dad.'

"I know I'm leaving the island in capable hands," he said as he got up.

"I love you, dad," Jinora said and smiled.

"I love you too, dear," Tenzin said and squeezed her shoulder before boarding the air ship.

Farther up the docks Bolin and Kai was wrestling in a play fight, that obviously Bolin was winning. Kai was so pumped with energy, completely opposite from when Jinora was trying to help him with his meditation. Completely opposite from how he had been the last couple of weeks in fact.

Korra walked up to Jinora from behind, eyeing the younger girl sympathetically.

"I'll keep him occupied while we're away, Jinora," Korra said and elbowed her in the arm. "He's not going on a vacation."

Jinora breathed a joyless laugh. "One week?" she asked, without taking her eyes off of the two as they made their way towards the airship.

"Tops," Korra said. She pulled Jinora into a tight hug, which Jinora realized was much needed. She hugged her back, feeling her worry slipping away for a moment. "See you soon," Korra said as she walked over to the airship, flashing one last reassuring smile.

"See you," Jinora said.

"Bye, Jinora! Have fun doing Tenzin's job!" Bolin said smoothly as he walked past her, leaving her and Kai to say goodbye alone.

Kai stepped up to her, slightly out of breath, with a wild spark in his eyes. The same spark she had fallen in love with in the first place. She smiled helplessly.

"I'm gonna miss you," she said quietly.

"I'll miss you too," he said and hugged her tightly. "But it's not for long this time," he added and kissed her softly on the lips. He cupped her face in his hands and kissed the tip of her nose. Jinora giggled and pulled away. "See you soon," he said.

"Bye," Jinora said and watched him walk towards the ship. Before he walked up to the door, he turned and waved with an excited smile on his face. Jinora smiled back. She stayed there until the ship had taken off and watched it fly away, until it was just a black dot on the horizon.

It was only her left on the docks. Her and the sound of the sea and the wind in the trees.

The day went by slowly. Jinora did everything she was supposed to: running training sessions for the air benders, alphabetize some old books Tenzin had imported from the Fire Nation and checking on the bison down in the stables. By the time dinner was done, there was only one chore left. A meditation session in the Temple.

The reverb in the temple made her voice sound much more powerful than it usually did. On the floor in front of her sat a group of seven other air benders. They usually did this session with Tenzin, to help them detach themselves from their daily worries, hoping to help enhance their focus during training.

'Alright everyone, assume the position and close your eyes… and breathe out… slowly,' Jinora said in a gentle tone. She cracked her eyes open to make sure everyone was doing it right, before she allowed herself to fall into focus.

She was a natural at it. She could find peace within herself by counting backwards from ten. All she would hear was her own steady breathing, and then eventually, her heartbeat. She knew the rhythm of it by now.

_Ba bom, ba bom, ba bom… _

But this time something was off. The darkness wasn't as soothing as it used to be. Shapes twirled around in front of her inner eye. She could see shades of blue and purple. Then she heard it. Her heart.

_Ba tish, ba tish, ba tish… _

It was different. It beat faster and faster, but different from what she was used to. A coldness washed over her, filled her from her chest and all the way out into her fingertips. Something was wrong.

In the darkness, the colors changed. The shades of blue turned white, like thin smoke twirling around in hypnotizing shapes. In the twirls, a face took shape. As much as she wanted to open her eyes and get away, she could not. Her mind kept digging deeper into the darkness, unfolding the misty layers of color until the face was clear as day. Until she stared directly into her own eyes.

She floated closer and closer and closer, until she was standing directly in front of her own reflection. She looked drained of all energy. Her eyes were cold, her gaze was distant. Jinora wanted to reach out and touch her, to see if she was real. She lifted her hand, reached out. She froze only inches away from her reflection. Her eyes were glued to the skin on her knuckles. She could see every single vein under her skin. Even in the dark, they became clear, as if her skin had become transparent. As she stared at her outstretched hand, the veins turned black. It looked like ink filled her veins, starting from her fingertips and running down her arm.

She could feel it sting. Burn her from the inside until she could not take it anymore.

She cried out. Her voice echoed throughout the temple. She jolted backwards, confused to find herself back in front of the air bender group. Seven puzzled faces stared at her.

She lifted her hands up in front of her, examining the skin. It was normal. The veins were only barely visible on the back of her hand.

"Jinora, are you alright?" a woman asked. She was about to get up, when Jinora jumped to her feet.

"Yes, I'm fine. Please excuse me," she said hurriedly and broke into a jog as she crossed the floor. She ran out of the wide open doors, and practically sprinted home.

She spent several minutes examining her skin in the mirror. Her air suit was sprawled out on the bathroom floor. When she was entirely sure there was no black veins anywhere and that nothing felt out of the ordinary, she got dressed and headed to the only place that could help her make sense of things. The library.

There were rows upon rows with books. So much knowledge collected into one hall. Growing up, most of Jinora's free time was spent in this place. She would start from A, and work her way through the entire alphabet, and not once could she remember to have felt bored. This time however, she found herself hesitating in front of the many shelves. She had absolutely no idea what to look for, or where to start. What was even going on with her?

Was it a result of stress? Maybe an illness? Or maybe, spirits forbid: puberty?

She made her way down an ile where she earlier had located books on dream interpretation. There were many ways to decipher a dream. One could look for symbols and colors, or analyze the events of the dream and compare them to the examples in the books.

She picked one at random and started looking through it. She stopped on the page that described what dreaming of a heart could mean.

_A bleeding and/or aching heart can represent desperation, despair and extreme sadness. You might be lacking support or love in your life. _

Jinora frowned. She had not felt particularly sad lately. Maybe frustrated that Kai did not seem to take his spiritual training seriously but… Her eyes fell on the last line of the paragraph again.

_You might be lacking support or love in your life._

Jinora stared at it for a while. For a moment she felt like the whole temperature in the library sunk several degrees. The light even seemed to go dimmer.

She shook it off. It could not be. She focused on looking up blood instead.

_To dream that you are bleeding, can represent suffering, exhaustion, or signify that you are feeling emotionally drained. It may also be a warning of upcoming bitter confrontations between you and your friends. _

The frown on her forehead grew even deeper. It did not make any sense for her to dream of these symbols, when she was feeling completely fine. All logic told her that these interpretations were completely wrong in her case, yet a part of her worried that they might be true. That maybe there was something in her life she was not seeing. That maybe it had to do with Kai.

When she looked up the color black, to see if she could find anything about the blackness filling her veins, she got really worried.

_… symbolizes the unknown, the unconscious, danger, mystery, darkness, death, rejection, hate or malice. The color invites you to dig deeper into your unconscious in order to gain a better understanding of yourself. _

The book fell heavily against her thighs. She was sat on the floor, looking up at the ceiling far up above her. She had mastered meditation long ago. She had meditated nearly every day for as long as she could remember. What on earth could there be that she did not know about herself by now?

Half heartedly, Jinora closed her eyes and counted backwards from ten, mentally preparing herself for what she might see.

But she could not make it past four. Her eyes shot open as she felt her chest ache again. She bit her lip. She had no idea what was happening to her, but on thing she knew for sure:

All the people that could possibly have helped her with this had all left that very same morning.

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**A/N:** Thank you for reading and I really hope you enjoyed it! I'll appreciate any feedback. Thank you! :)


	3. Chapter 3 Vessel

**A/N:** Sorry about the long wait! Uni work is killing me, but I am finally done! Here is a short thing to get the plot moving. I hope you like it! Will keep writing and update as soon as I can. Love you all!

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**Chapter 3. Vessel**

Kai had been standing at the very front of the airship. Excitement had burned within him. He had grinned from ear to ear, full of expectations of this so called spirit storm.

In retrospect, he realized this was the only moment of happiness he got to experience during the entire journey. Korra seemed to have made it her life goal to whip him into shape, avatar-style, and none of Kai's old tricks seemed to help him get away. No matter where he went, Korra was waiting behind the next corner, arms crossed and fingers tapping impatiently.

On the third day, she had him do sit ups, while hanging from the railing of the airship. Naturally she did it with him, with additional weights. Tenzin had tried to reason with her, considering the dangers of the day's activity - a danger Korra did not recognize, seeing as, as she put it: "Kai can fly."

"86… Hnngh! 87… Hnngh! 88…" Korra's counting was interrupted by a groan loud enough for the entire airship to hear.

Kai fell limp against the side of the airship, hitting the back of his head in the process. His arms hung from his shoulders, dangling freely in the wind. Hanging upside down had never been less fun.

"What's wrong, Kai? Are you giving up at 88?" Korra asked tauntingly and took a short break .

"I gave up at 40, Korra! I can't go as quick as you," he answered in one long groan. He was starting to feel dizzy now. "Why can't you just leave me alone?"

"Because you show promise, and I'm not going to let you slack off," Korra said and started doing sit ups again.

"I'm not slacking off! I train every day," Kai argued. He reached for the railing, hoping to be able to haul himself aboard the airship. His abs screamed in pain as he tried to curve his body upwards.

"I know that you are a good airbender - _hnngh. 93… - _But exactly how much time do you spend training your mind?"

Next to her Kai was holding himself up with one arm tangled around the railing, in an incredibly uncomfortable position. "Is that what all these _insane_ exercises are for? My _mind_?"

"I was aiming to teach you how to stay _focused_," she said and yanked him down again.

"Woah!" The back of his head smacked against the airship once more. "Ow."

"Sorry. Had to be done. Hnng! 95…" Korra said.

Kai exhaled slowly. He had a nagging feeling what all this might be about.

"Did Jinora put you up to this? Is it punishment for not being able to go to the spirit world yet?"

"As if Jinora is that good a schemer," Korra said and allowed herself to hang face to face with him for a moment.

Her short hair blew wildly in the wind. Her eyes were lighthearted and understanding for a moment.

"I'm doing it because I recognize the place you are at in your training. Meditation and spirituality is boring, because it takes time and patience to master, but it is still a huge part of being an airbender. And I think it would make your girlfriend immensely happy if you would actually give it your best."

Kai sighed. He allowed himself a moment to look down at the green fields and the shapes of the ground far beneath them. Pondering whether or not to open up.

"What?" Korra asked.

"Well, I…" Kai trailed off at first.

"I know how much she wants me to see the spirit world with her, but… I have tried to get there, I really have. But no matter what I never manage it. I'm worried I just might not be able to do it, and it just feels easier to pretend it isn't a big deal instead of showing her how hard I try. I…" he paused for a moment, taking a deep breath. "I just don't want to disappoint her."

Korra smiled at him and was about to say something, when a sudden shadow seemed to swallow the airship. The blue sky was replaced by thick, threatening, dark clouds. The two of them tilted their heads back. The entire landscape ahead was swept in darkness. It was like flying into the night, even though it had been a sunny day only seconds ago.

"We better get up," Korra said.

"Well, what do you think now, Tenzin?"

"Did you really bring me here just in case you got the chance to tell me I was wrong, Korra?"

The tension in the bridge was already sky high. Asami was standing by the dashboard, with hundreds of tiny lights flashing before her face, while Mako and Bolin were glued to the windows. Kai remained by Korra's side, frowning towards the windows. The sight was quite incredible, had it not looked so dangerous.

"The clouds are purple, Tenzin. You can't tell me _that's_ normal cloud behavior?" Korra demanded and gestured wildly towards the darkness outside the airship.

"All I'm saying is that it is _probably not a spirit storm,"_ Tenzin said, finishing through gritted teeth.

"Okay you two," Asami said, while rubbing her temples. "How about we start planning our next move?"

Mako spread out an enormous map over the table in the middle of the room. Everyone gathered around it. Kai was standing next to Bolin, leaning slightly over the table to get a good look.

«There is a village on the east side of this mountain,» Mako said and pointed at the map.

The village was small. It was filled with wooden houses that seemed to have been standing for generations. The streets were decorated with trees and flowers. It was clear that in its prime, this village was very in touch with nature and its surroundings. Now, however, it was as withered as the flowers in the streets. The dark seemed to have drained the whole village of all life. There was not a soul in sight. Not even as the enormous air ship landed outside the gates, did anyone as much as peer through the curtains.

"Cheerful," Bolin said as they all lined up outside the ship.

"Maybe this wasn't a good idea," Mako said. "I'll check if there's any other villages nearby."

"No, hold on," Tenzin said and held a hand out. He stepped forward and read the sign on the village gate. "Kai," there was something about the way Tenzin said his name that always made Kai feel like he had done something wrong. "Growing up in the Earth Kingdom, did you ever hear about a group of monks called the Seishin?"

Kai pondered for a moment. "The crazy spirit people?"

"Quite accurately," Tenzin said. "One of their temples is in this village. They have probably scared people away from the streets with this spirit storm nonsense. They strongly believe that doomsday will come."

"Well, you can't say they don't have reason to believe it," Korra said, pointing up at the grim cloudiness.

Tenzin eyed her impatiently.

"Maybe we should see if we can find anyone to talk to? Maybe we can find out what has been going on?" Asami suggested, squeezing in between Korra and Tenzin.

They walked up the main street. The temple was visible in the very end of it. It took them ten long minutes to walk up to its wide wooden steps. The temple was a master piece, with wines curling up along the walls and windpipes hanging from the ceiling, chiming in the wind. It also had cheerful inscriptions about death and ignorant mortals engraved over the door.

Kai clicked his tongue. "Right. I'm starting to remember what people said about this town."

"What did they say?" Bolin asked, leaning in closer.

Tenzin was already on the porch, knocking on the door for the third time. Besides him Korra was cracking her knuckles, ready to tear it down with brute strength.

"That they used to practice human sacrifices," Kai said, his voice dropping to a whisper. "And that they kept the bodies in the basement for wayworn spirits to use as vessels to go back to the spirit world."

Bolin's right eye twitched.

«One question, though,» he said, holding up a finger. "How does a spirit get wayworn? Don't they just fly around? And why would they need a _human_ vessel to go home?"

"I'm not sure about the details, man," Kai said and shrugged. "Besides, these people are completely mental. I don't think we should take them seriously."

"What is this ruckus?"

A thin, hoarse voice sounded from around the corner of the house. Everyone froze. Kai covered his mouth, praying to the spirits that none of the monks had heard him talk ill of them. Tenzin had to pull Korra away from the door mid kick.

A cloaked, old man, with a walking staff, waddled onto the front side of the porch. He was haunched over, and seemed to be struggling in his movements. Attached to his walking staff was a small lantern. It cast a gloomy, green light over his saggy features. He looked them all over. Kai got a glimpse of his glassy eyes and felt chills run down his spine.

"Who are you?" he asked.

"I am council man Tenzin of Republic city. This is Avatar Korra," Tenzin said and put a hand on Korra's shoulder. "We are investigating this strange weather."

"This is not weather, my friend," the old man said and looked up at the purple sky. "This is only the beginning. This might very well be the end of the world. You'll be the last avatar that ever lived," he said and nudged his staff in Korra's direction.

Tenzin tried to suppress a groan. Korra rolled her eyes.

"That's a song I haven't heard before," she mumbled sarcastically.

"Do you know where all the people are?" Asami asked, stepping forward.

The old man looked at her and then gazed out over the street.

"They have fled to the sacred temple in the mountains. Only there can they be safe from the Spirit Storm," he said.

Korra nudged Tenzin with her elbow. He snorted, completely unimpressed.

"So you have made all these people believe that doomsday is upon them in the shape of a supernatural event, that you have no proof is coming?" Tenzin asked, quirking his eyebrow.

"We have proof."

"Korra investigated the spirit world. It is in perfect balance," Tenzin argued.

"It is not caused by imbalance. It is caused by a spirt," he said.

"Why would a spirit do this?" Bolin asked.

"And _how_?" Mako followed up.

"It is lost. Despair has turned it into a dark, disrupted, spirit, and its energy is leaving this storm in its wake. This darkness will only end when it can go home again," the old man said.

"What's stopping it?" Korra asked.

The old man smiled.

"It needs a vessel."

* * *

**A/N: **Thank you for reading! I appreciate feedback as always, and next chapter will come shortly. xx


	4. Chapter 4 Murals

**A/N: **Heyyy! So a lot of the plot I came up with is revealed in this chapter, so yey things are finally gonna start moving along! I thank you all for leaving me such nice reviews! They really keep me motivated! And I hope that you like this chapter. Think its the longest one yet.

* * *

**Chapter 4. Murals **

"Seven more days," Jinora mumbled against her palm.

"What's that?" Opal asked.

The two of them sat on a balcony, facing the south. Under them was a twenty foot drop into the ocean. Harsh waves were crushing against the island, daring them to fall. It was no more than midday, but a thick layer of dangerously dark clouds were blocking the sun over the horizon. The two of them had been watching it quietly until Jinora spoke.

"Nothing," Jinora mumbled and pulled her legs up against her chest.

Opal scuffed impatiently and turned to face her fully.

"Okay, Jinora, I'm sorry, but you've been in a terrible mood ever since the other's left, and if I'm honest -" she paused when Jinora eyed her tiredly.

The nightmares had not stopped ever since the night before Kai and the others left. They were getting worse as well. She hadn't meditated ever since she tried to lead that meditation session in the temple. She had tried many times, but every time she was faced with images more disturbing than the ones before. For the first time in her life, Jinora was not at peace, and it was driving her mad.

"Ehm," Opal considered her words. "You don't look so good."

"I haven't gotten a lot of sleep lately," Jinora said and turned to look at the nearly black ocean.

"Yeah, you've said that already, but I don't think that's the whole story," Opal said, leaning over to try and catch Jinora's eye. "I mean, you look really ill."

It was true. Jinora was spooked by her own reflection at this point. Her skin was pale and her eyes were bloodshot. Dark circles had begun to form around her eyes as well. The latest development was a slight tremble in her fingers, something she was trying very hard to hide from Opal right now.

"Has Pema had a look at you at least?"

"Yeah. She gave me herbal tea and made me take a two hour long, soul cleansing, bath," Jinora said. "I'm supposed to stay in bed, but I just can't."

"Why not? You look like rest is exactly what you need," Opal said.

Jinora felt bad for making her worry about her, but had no energy to act differently. The last thing she wanted was to tell anyone about her grotesque dreams and visions, and in all honesty, there wasn't really anything physically wrong with her.

"Please tell me what's wrong, Jinora," Opal pleaded.

"Well, I keep having these nightmares," Jinora said absentmindedly. In the distance, to the south-east, a lightning struck over a mountain top for the second time since they sat down. Thunder rumbled faintly over the sky.

"About what?" Opal urged her on.

"Horrible things," Jinora said, pulling her eyes away from the mountain top. She sighed heavily. "You really don't want to know the details. But the things is, I'm starting to think they're not just dreams. I see the same things when I try to meditate. They're like visions. As if my subconscious is trying to tell me something."

"Tell you what?"

"I don't know," Jinora groaned quietly. "I can't figure it out."

A third lightning struck over the mountain top. Thunder rumbled a bit louder. Jinora frowned.

"If you tell me about it, maybe I can help you sort it out," Opal suggested.

Jinora blinked and had to force herself to look away from the mountain again. She looked at Opal for a moment, trying to decide whether the grim details were worth spilling. Opal's worried eyes made it hard to refuse.

"Well, I…" Jinora cleared her throat. A mild ache made her reach up and put a hand to her chest. It happened frequently now. "I keep dreaming that I'm dead,» she said, averting her eyes. "I think," she added, rubbing the aching spot on her chest.

"Dead?" Opal repeated breathlessly.

Another lightning struck over the mountain top.

"Yeah. Hey, did you see that lightning there?" Jinora asked hurriedly.

"Yeah. But Jinora, that is really serious stuff," Opal said, thinking that she was avoiding the subject.

"That is the fourth time it's struck in the same place," Jinora said, not paying attention to Opal.

"Lightning never strikes in the same place, Jinora," Opal said, arching her eye brow. "Are you sure you're okay to be out of bed?"

"I know, that's what's bothering me," Jinora said and turned to look at her friend.

Opal looked at her like she was losing it.

"I'm not imagining it," Jinora said slowly.

The ache in her chest grew stronger. She grimaced and gripped her chest tighter.

"What's going on?" Opal asked, grabbing Jinora's shoulder.

"I don't know. It really hurts," Jinora said, leaning forward.

Opal grabbed her, making sure she didn't fall over the edge.

"Common, Jinora. We better get you to bed," Opal said and carefully helped Jinora down from the wall.

On their way back up to the temple, Jinora looked over her shoulder. Just as she did, a fifth lightning struck over the same mountain top. It was closely followed by an ear deafening thunder.

* * *

In the Earth Kingdom things were moving slowly.

The old monk had reluctantly agreed to let the group into the temple, but refused to spill any helpful information about the storm. It had led to a very impatient Korra, which meant that it was up to Tenzin to hold her back whenever she was hit by the urge to turn to violence.

Between all the shouting and fighting, Kai found it easy to sneak out of the main hall and down one of the many halls in the temple. The monk had specifically said to only stay in the hall, but Kai had never been one to stay in one place for too long.

His footsteps were the only sound as he made his way down the dimly lit hallways.

He blinked curiously as he found a mural around the next corner. It was hard to make out the details in the dark, but he could see a figure that looked like a dark spirit. Only it was enormous. A blue glowing person, probably the avatar, was depicted under it.

Kai followed the paintings, squinting his eyes to try and see better. In the next picture, the spirit was put in a cage by the glowing person.

Next, the cage was surrounded by people, and it was opened. The spirit was flying free, but with white lines cutting through its form. Kai shrugged and moved on to the next picture, where the glowing person was meditating, while the spirit was hovering over him or her.

Kai put a hand to his chin. He had a nagging feeling that there was something about this mural. There was something he wasn't seeing.

"Kai?"

Kai jumped and nearly stumbled in his own feet at the sound of Bolin calling out to him.

"Ey, why are you so jumpy?" Bolin asked, holding his hands up.

"Gah... I was just in deep thought," Kai said. "Don't tell Korra you caught me off guard, please," he added, a hint of fear striking his features. "She'll make me do more avatar training."

"You're secret is safe with me," Bolin said. "But what are you doing here? We're supposed to stay in the hall."

"Uhm, I got bored," Kai said and chuckled sheepishly.

"Yeah, I totally get that," Bolin said and tilted his head to the side. "But this is exactly why Mako didn't want me to keep you when we first found you."

"Keep me?" Kai repeated with a chuckle.

Bolin completely ignored it and put his arms around Kai's shoulders.

"You gotta fight your old impulses more, little bro," Bolin continued and walked Kai all the way back to the main hall. They slipped in discreetly in the middle of one of Korra's louder counter arguments.

"What do you mean I can't take this thing back to the spirit world? I _am_ the avatar! I am more than strong enough!"

The monk was sitting with his robes around him like a birds nest. He was in a wooden chair that squeaked every time he moved, behind a desk that was covered in old scrolls and empty ink pots. Korra was leaning dangerously over the desk, staring him down with her famous avatar death glare.

"You are hosting the spirit of Raava, already, avatar. Your vessel is occupied," the monk said and smiled weakly.

Korra pointed her finger at him, squinting her eyes in annoyance.

"Don't you give me that smug little smirk, you little -"

"Korra," Tenzin said strictly. "Take a few deep breaths before you continue speaking."

In the other end of the hall, Asami and Mako were both sitting in a sofa. Asami looked like she was about to fall asleep, and Mako had resorted to looking up other villages where they might find more helpful people.

"Wait, so if the avatar can't host it, what was that glowy person in the murals doing with that huge spirit?" Kai asked before he or Bolin could stop him.

An awkward silence followed.

"The murals don't depict the avatar," the monks said slowly. His wrinkles changed into a sour grimace. "And it seems your youngest member has abused my hospitality."

"Kai," Tenzin said under his breath, sending him a stern look. Kai averted his eyes.

"Wait. What are you talking about?" Korra asked looking at Kai.

Kai sent a uncertain glance towards the old monk, but it seemed the damage had already been done. Might as well keep damaging.

"I found this mural about a huge spirit that was caged by a glowing person. I figured that it had to be the avatar, because, you know, it looked kinda avatar state-ish. And then some people freed the spirit, and it looked like it was broken. Then it went back to the avatar," Kai said gesturing wildly as he tried to make sense of his observations.

"A fine assessment," Tenzin muttered under his breath.

The monk sighed and sunk down in his robes. Without warning, Mako jumped up like a police dog catching the scent of a bad guy.

"He didn't want us to see that mural," he said, pointing at the monk with his pencil.

The monk's eyebrows twitched. His wrinkles seemed to grow deeper as his grimace turned even sourer.

Korra rolled her eyes impatiently.

"Alright, old man. You have three seconds to start talking, or I'm gonna start flipping things in here," she said, cracking her knuckles.

The monk sighed.

"And you better start from the beginning," Korra continued.

The monk eyed her defiantly.

"Is this precious to you?" Korra asked and picked up one of the gold bound scrolls on his desk.

"Don't touch that!" the monk croaked.

Korra arched her eye brows and started unrolling it.

"Okay, I'll tell you everything. Just put it down," the monk said, muttering something about holy items and reckless avatars.

Korra happily put it down and placed her hands on her hips instead.

"There is a dark spirit on the lose," he started.

His voice dropped even quieter, as if he was afraid to talk about it.

«It has been trapped in the physical world for centuries, caged by ignorant people. But now it is finally free. The problem is that it's imprisonment has made it weak. It has been in the wrong world for so long it's energy has split into several pieces and are now roaming the Earth Kingdom, searching for a host, strong enough to bind all the pieces together and take it back to the Spirit World.»

"That's a lot to process," Bolin said.

"Why was it trapped?" Asami asked.

"Who freed it?" Tenzin asked?

"What does any of this have to do with the weather?" Mako asked,

"WHO THE HELL IS THE HOST?" Korra shouted over everyone else.

"Legend has it that when it first entered our world, it disturbed the peace," the monk said.

"Tenzin, it is a legend. How do you not know about this?" Korra asked, interrupting the monk.

"Benders found a way to lock it away under ground, to make sure that it wouldn't cause any more damage to the earth. This is nothing but a cover up story of course. The way the Seishin sees it, the spirit turned dark because it was lost, confused. And instead of helping it, humans doomed their own world by keeping it locked up. Unfortunately, no one knows the exact events that occurred."

"I knew we should have brought Jinora. I bet she's read about this somewhere," Korra said, crossing her arms.

Kai felt a soft sting in his guts at the mention of Jinora's name.

"Don't believe everything he says, Korra. This man is a Seishin, a fanatic. He was raised on the fear of the apocalypse," Tenzin hissed back at Korra.

"We are not fanatics," the monk said coldly. "The spirit is real. It's destructive powers are upon us as we speak. It came to this world by mistake and instead of guiding it home we punished it. We trapped it for hundreds of years until it shattered into hundreds of pieces. But all of that is about to be made right."

"What are you saying?" Korra asked, her left eye lid twitching impatiently.

"As long as the spirit is in our world it will use its energy to try and summon all its pieces. That energy is what's causing this storm. It won't stop until it is in the vessel, and maybe even then the energy might keep disturbing our nature."

"Get to the point," Korra urged.

"If it doesn't get to the vessel soon, the world as we know it may end. The Seishin has known this time would come for years. We have found a way to correct the injustice and maybe, a way for the spirit to go home, and for our world to live on," he said, his voice getting hoarser by the minute.

Korra buried her face in her palms. Kai felt the sting in his guts grow more painful. There was something he was not seeing here.

"You mean to tell me _you freed it?"_ Tenzin nearly shouted.

"We did," the monk said, swallowing hard. "But not before finding the vessel."

"Well, that's fine then, right?" Bolin chipped in happily. "I mean that is how we solve this right? Get the spirit home, the earth lives on? Right?"

"What'll happen to the vessel?" Korra asked skeptically.

"She will die," the monk said.

"Die?" Korra exclaimed.

"What do you mean 'she'?" Kai asked from the back of the room. No one seemed to hear him.

"It's a small sacrifice for the survival of the entire mankind," the monk tried.

"Oh, no, you. No one is dying on my watch. There has to be another way," Korra said.

"Well, who is the vessel, then?" Tenzin shot in.

The monk hesitated. He looked up at Tenzin for a long time, as if he needed to plan his words carefully.

"She is the only one who could carry out the task. Our only hope."

"Who?" Tenzin demanded.

"It's Jinora," Kai nearly whispered. He could feel his heart beating frantically in his chest. "They've sent it after Jinora."

Everyone stared at him at first, but then they turned to look at the monk. He was reaching for his staff when Korra slammed her fists onto the table. The bang was so loud the monk jumped back into his seat.

"Are you not even gonna deny it?" she demanded.

Tenzin was white as a sheet. His eyeballs looked like they were about to pop out of his skull at any time.

"She is of Avatar Aang's blood. She -"

"You sent a dark spirit to possess my fifteen year old daughter's body?!" Tenzin's voice made the very walls seem like they were trembling.

"She is an airbending master," the monk tried to explain. "She has a connection with the spirit world unlike any other."

"Who gave you the right to sacrifice her? She is my girl!" Tenzin cried out.

"She'll be doing what's right."

A gush of wind rushed through the hall, sending scrolls and furniture, and the monk himself flying backwards. When everyone looked up again, Kai was on the other side of the desk, pinning the monk to the wall behind him. His usually kind eyes were burning with rage.

"You hav to stop it _now_," Kai said through gritted teeth.

"It's too late. There is no way to call it back," the man said, his voice strained by Kai's grip on his robes.

"BUT SHE'LL DIE," Kai screamed.

Everyone moved at the same time, but Mako was the first to reach Kai's side. He pulled Kai away from the monk, fighting his wild protest like only a cop could do. The monk fell to the floor, gasping hoarsely for air.

"Kai, cool it!" Mako had to shout to get through to him. He gripped the younger boy's shoulders tightly, trying his best to hold him still.

"But didn't you -" Kai started, but gave up in despair when words failed him.

"I know, Kai, but losing your head isn't helping her," Mako said, eying him carefully.

"What are we gonna do?" Bolin asked, jogging in one place as if he was standing on hot coal.

"Asami, ready the airship," Tenzin said.

"What are you thinking?" Korra asked as she pulled the monk up to his feet.

"We're going to Republic city. That spirit isn't touching my daughter," Tenzin said, his voice dark with anger. "And we're taking _him_ with us."

"Gotcha," Korra said.

She followed Asami out of the door, with a death grip around the old man's arm. In her other hand she held his staff.

"But you can't stop it," the monk said desperately, before Korra dragged him out of earshot.

"Are you okay, bro?» Bolin asked softly, walking up to Kai and Mako. Bolin was about to pull Kai into a massive hug, but Kai moved too quickly.

"Get off me," he said and pulled away from Mako's grip.

Kai stormed out of the temple, trying his best to keep the tears from falling from his eyes.

* * *

**A/N: **Thank you for making it all the way down here! As usual I appreciate any feedback. And in other news I hope you have a lovely day. Thank you! xx


	5. Chapter 5 Lightnings

**A/N: **Hey! I'm sorry it took a little while. Thank you so much for all your nice reviews! You guys really inspire me! I hope you like this. Things are gonna get pretty serious from here on, so yeahhh

* * *

**Chapter 5. Lightnings **

The thunderstorm got worse throughout the day, and continued tirelessly into the night.

Jinora was sitting in her bedroom window, dressed in her white button up pajamas shirt and trousers. The window was cracked open, allowing the cool air to seep into her bedroom. The night was tainted by an unexplainable purple light with every lightning. Thunder rumbled through the sky and roared loudly; as if it was attempting to tear down the city by sheer volume alone.

Jinora paid no mind to it. She was staring intently at the mountaintop across the sea. The one where the lightnings kept striking earlier that day, when she was out with Opal. It had happened several times throughout the day, and it was driving her out of her mind.

It was impossible - yet it was happening right before her eyes.

On a piece of paper in her trembling hands, Jinora drew a line for every lightning. She was keeping count. So far, she had drawn eleven lines on the paper.

The aching in her chest had come and passed throughout the day. By now, it was scaring everyone else more than it scared Jinora. When she had prepared for bed earlier, she nearly jumped at the sight of herself in the mirror. Her skin was so pale, her eyes were red, and her hands wouldn't stop trembling. She was also sure her veins had become more apparent on her skin - even though she had a nagging feeling she might have been imagining that part.

A soft knock on the door broke her intense concentration. She had to blink a couple of times when she realized she had forgotten to do so for a while.

"Come in," Jinora called.

Pema stepped into the room with a worried expression on her face. She left the door slightly open, allowing a ray of yellow light to seep in from the hallway.

"Honey, what are you doing out of bed?" she asked and hurried over to the window.

"There's something really weird going on out there, mom," Jinora started, but her voice was groggy and lacked the urgency she meant to express.

"Let your father and the others worry about that, sweetheart. You need to focus on getting better," Pema said and put a hand to Jinora's pale cheek. "Jinora, you're freezing! Get down from there."

Jinora allowed Pema to drag her to bed. As Pema wrapped her up in blankets, Jinora's eyes were glued to the paper. It had fallen to the floor. Pema paid no notice of it, but Jinora couldn't take her eyes off it.

"How's your chest feeling? Any more pain?" Pema asked. There was a long silence that Jinora didn't register. "Jinora?"

"Huh? Oh. No," Jinora said.

Her words dissapeared in her mouth at the sight of her mother's expression. Pema's frown was dead serious. She stroke some stray strands of hair away from Jinora's forehead, and let her hand linger over the blue arrow on her forehead.

"I don't care how big you get," Pema said quietly. "You'll always be my baby."

"Mom," Jinora started, but Pema shook her head.

"What on earth is happening to you, Jinora? I don't know how to help you," Pema's voice trembled dangerously.

Jinora bit down on the insides of her cheeks, feeling guilty for some insane reason. She reached up and took her mother's hand in hers. She tried to ignore the way Pema eyed her trembling fingers.

"I'm gonna be fine, mom," she promised, and squeezed her hand as reassuringly as she could.

"But you look terrible," Pema said and put both palms on Jinora's cheeks. "Did you eat something? Did something bite you? Can you have caught something from the spirit world? Are there even diseases there?"

Some kind of spark lit up inside Jinora, as if she got an idea, only she didn't know exactly what it was yet.

"I'm going to try and call Katara again. This wretched storm is making it impossible to reach anyone," Pema said and stood up from the bed. "You get some sleep, honey. Don't worry about anything but getting better, okay?"

"Okay, mom," Jinora said absentmindedly.

Pema lingered by the door for a moment, not sure whether leaving her daughter alone in this state was safe. Jinora barely even noticed when the warm light from the hallway dissapeared, and the door was closed. She didn't even respond to her mother's quiet "Good night."

There were no diseases in the Spirit World, as far as Jinora knew. But the Spirits could become dark spirits by the slightest imbalance. Which was how Jinora was feeling: completely out of balance, as if something was pushing at her from within.

She wanted to blame it on her lack of meditation the last days, but she knew better.

Jinora stood up from bed and picked up the paper from the floor. She looked up in time to see two flashes of white light strike over the very same mountaintop.

Jinora furrowed her brows as she tried to connect the pieces. If this storm was a result of a spirit out of balance - maybe that imbalance had something to do with what was happening to her?

She picked up the pencil from the windowsill and drew two new lines on the paper. She was struck by an unwavering need to go there, to the mountain. To see what was going on with her own eyes.

Glancing back at the bedroom door, she felt a guilty ache in her stomach. Pema was already so worried about her. What would she do if she came back and found that Jinora was not in her bed? But if Jinora was to ask, she knew Pema would refuse to let her go.

Maybe she should just go back to bed? Jinora's shoulders sunk at the thought.

Three new lightnings struck. Right before her eyes. Purple light shot through the night.

Jinora bounced back to the window. One more lightning. Then another. Then two at once. The urge to go out there came from deep within her. It was powerful. Too powerful for her to fight.

Soundlessly, she slipped out of the window and into the night.

* * *

The airship had never moved so slow in its entire existence. At least that was what Kai was ranting to himself as he hung over the railing at the front of the ship. He was glaring at the purple clouds. Glaring at the flashes of light in the horizon, where he knew Republic city was.

Of course that's where the storm would break lose. Of course.

"Hey, Kai..?"

Mako's voice called out hesitantly.

Kai rolled his eyes. Both Bolin, Korra and Asami had already attempted to console him; but none of Bolin's jokes, Korra's pep talks or Asami's compassion could ease his mind.

Not as long as Jinora was in trouble.

"Hey, man, how's it going?" Mako asked as he rested his arms on the railing next to Kai.

Kai scoffed. He leaned down and put his chin in his folded arms on the railing.

"Okay, dumb question, I know," Mako sighed. "Common, Kai, you can't shut down like this. Everyone is worried about you."

Kai didn't respond. His frown only deepened. None of them should worry about him. He wasn't the one who was about to be sacrificed so that an ancient spirit could go home, and maybe not destroy the world in the process.

"Kai, you can either talk to me, or to Tenzin. He's next in line," Mako said and pointed over his shoulder with his thumb. "And let me tell you: he is not in a good mood."

Kai glanced at him with a pained expression.

"I just can't be inside with... with him," Kai said quietly.

"The munk," Mako said. "He's still insisting we can't stop the spirit. Korra is giving him the full avatar treatment," Mako said and laughed without humor. He was just trying to defuse the tension, but it didn't work.

"He deserves worse," Kai said.

"Kai," Mako started.

"Don't try and lecture me," Kai said a little louder.

"I know how you feel, oka-"

"Oh, really? Is your girlfriend's life in danger?" Kai asked bitterly, holding back his anger to his best ability.

Mako sighed irritably.

"No, but I went through something similar with Korra the first year I knew her."

Kai bit his tongue. He remembered Bolin telling him all about Mako and Korra's past - to Mako's annoyance.

"When she was kidnapped?" he asked, glancing at Mako.

Mako nodded his head. His jaw relaxed, as if he felt relieved to finally get beyond Kai's defense.

"Not being with her, not being able to help, was driving me out of my mind," Mako said. "But losing your cool isn't going to help. Especially when you're on an airship, and there is literarily no faster way to get to her."

Kai sighed. There was a moment of silence between them. Mako let the moment stretch out, hoping Kai was taking the time to think about what he had said. However, Kai was fighting an inner battle on whether or not to open up.

The sky above them grew ever darker. The clouds were thick and heavy. Irregular blasts of wind raced through the air, and grew stronger with every blast.

His guts twisted uncomfortably inside of him as he tried to plan his words. Why was talking always so hard for him?

"I'm really scared for her," he said. His voice was so forced that it was raspy.

"I know, man," Mako said and put an unexpected hand on Kai's shoulder. He squeezed reassuringly, despite Kai's jolt of surprise. "But we'll save her together."

With the wind pushing at their backs, Mako managed to pull Kai back inside.

The bridge was once again filled with tension. The monk was seated in one of the sofa's in the end of the lounge. Korra was marching back and forth in front of him. Asami was by the dashboard, managing the enormous ship. Bolin was sat awkwardly in the sofa opposite of the munk, and Tenzin was sitting next to him, glaring daggers at the old man.

Kai half expected to be met with cheers for coming inside with Mako, but all he got was a stern nod from Korra and a half hearted smile from Bolin.

"More bad news?" he asked without wanting to know the answer.

"He just told us about how the Spirit will affect Jinora if it possesses her," Tenzin said through gritted teeth. Kai felt a cold wave rush through him.

"Do we know if it has reached her yet then?" Mako asked.

"I've tried to call the island one million times," Asami said from the front of the bridge, just as she moved to hang up the phone once again. "The storm must be disrupting the signal."

"How does it affect her?" Kai asked.

Everyone fell quiet. Bolin and Asami looked at Kai with worried frowns. Korra stopped and crossed her arms.

"He can tell you," she said and nodded towards the monk.

The monk glanced up at her. He seemed to be in pain. His wrinkles seemed deeper, his eyes were watery. Kai felt no sympathy for him. He could not pity someone who defended putting a death sentence on Jinora.

"We can't know for sure," the monk started. "But from what we've gathered from the scrolls; once the human body is possessed by a spirit; a scattered spirit no less, it will start competing for her awareness."

"Basically, it'll make her lose her mind," Korra said, having no patience for the monks carefully selected words.

Tenzin stood up suddenly. His robes fluttered behind him as he marched across the bridge and walked down the spiral staircase in the middle of the room.

"I'm sorry, Tenzin..." Korra called after him, but trailed off once he disappeared into the first floor.

Kai leaned his hip against the arm lean of the sofa. He stared at the old man. He knew the look in his eye was dark and unlike him self. He could feel the anger pulsating in his very veins. He wondered briefly if this was what it was like to really hate someone.

A lightning struck in the horizon, just over where Republic city was meant to be. It was so powerful that it lit up the entire landscape. Kai saw stars swirling around the room for a moment.

"Damn these lightnings," Asami muttered, rubbing her eyes.

"There is one more thing," the monk said with a low voice.

"What?" Korra demanded.

Kai's frown deepened.

"Once the spirit has started taking hold of her, it'll start calling for her; or for the parts of it inside of her. It'll do everything in its power to become whole again."

"And how will it do that?" Kai asked monotonously.

"With its energy."

Everyone looked to the windows as another lightning struck by the city.

"The lightnings," Mako said.

"Why would Jinora go out chasing lightnings in the middle of the night? You flippin' moron. She's not some mindless brat; she's a genius!" Korra shouted.

"She's not herself," the monk said, staring at the floor. He looked up, ever so slowly to meet Kai's stare. Kai felt the urge to look away, but forced himself to stay put. "She's becoming the spirit."

Kai wanted to scream at the top of his lungs. Instead he groaned through gritted teeth and plunged to his feet.

"How long until we're there?" he asked Asami.

"Another six hours," Asami said, glancing to Korra for reassurance.

Kai wanted to shout at her, but it wasn't her fault. She couldn't magically make the ship fly faster.

Instead he spun on his heel and climbed down the stairs, ignoring Bolin's pleas for him to stay. He stopped in the end of the hallway, near the entrance of the ship. He leaned his back against the metallic wall. Allowed the coldness of the metal to seep into his body.

He could hear the sound of a phone number being dialed, and then the slamming of the phone as someone hung up angrily. Then it repeated. Kai took a deep breath. He knew who it was.

He soundlessly moved up the hallway. In one of the offices, he found Tenzin leaning over a desk, dialing the number so violently that Kai half expected the phone to break under the pressure of his finger.

"Common... Call!" he shouted at the phone, before he threw it across the room. The lead stopped it, and the phone swung backwards through the air and crashed into the desk. A faint beeping was audible across the room.

"What do you want, Kai?" Tenzin asked without looking up.

"Still not working?" Kai asked, avoiding the question. He nodded towards the phone.

"Yes," Tenzin sighed and sunk into the arm chair behind the desk. He looked a hundred years older now. His face was paler, his eyes were shadowed.

Kai felt selfish for some reason. Tenzin was Jinora's father, and still he managed to at least stay with the group and do something relatively helpful. All Kai had done was lose his patience and then shut down.

What kind of an airbender was he?

"I'm sorry," Kai said.

Tenzin looked up. It was the first time he had looked properly at someone since they had boarded the ship in the village.

"For what?" he asked, surprisingly softly.

Kai blinked away tears from his eyes. Felt like a little boy. Felt helpless.

"For losing my cool with him, back at the temple," Kai said. The words hurt in his throat; made him feel thirsty. "For... for having such little self control. You've always told me to learn to control my impulses if I wanted to be a good airbender."

"Kai..." Tenzin said and rubbed his chin tiredly. "You've come a long way since I told you that. But it takes an impossible amount of self control not to blow up when someone you love is in danger. Especially when you have the one responsible right in front of you. I don't blame you for losing your patience; I'm proud that you held back."

Kai had to take a moment. Had to swallow the lump in his throat; remember how to speak.

"I just..." He trails off.

Tenzin stood up from the chair. Kai kept his eyes on the floor, until he felt the weight of Tenzin's hand on his shoulder. He met his eyes.

"I know I can trust you to do whatever it takes to save Jinora's life," he said.

Without warning and before Kai could respond, Tenzin pulled him into a hug. The very first hug he had ever given him. Kai was torn between feeling awkward and grateful. But he couldn't deny it made him feel a lot better.

* * *

Pepper flew soundlessly through the air. Jinora cluthed the reins tightly, worried that the tremble in her fingers were getting worse. She regretted not taking time to change into her air suit. The thin cotton in her pajamas was no match against the harsh wind.

They had been flying for about five minutes, and were already half way across the sea. It wasn't far. She purposely steered pepper in a curved line, staying far away from the light from the city.

She had gone out thinking that this was important; that it would help her. Instead, she was feeling worse by the minute. The closer they got, the more her chest started aching.

Jinora haunched over and gasped for air as a wave of pain rushed through her. It was completely new to her. It felt like electricity exploded inside of her, and then raced all the way out into her fingertips and toes. It made her feel numb and dizzy.

Pepper made a worried sound in the back of his throat, as Jinora gripped his fur.

"It's okay," Jinora mumbled between gasps for air. She stroked peppers head with a shaky hand.

They made it all the way across the sea. Jinora landed pepper on a grassy hill, where she had trees to find shelter under in case it started raining. She slid down from her head and took only a minute to say goodbye.

"I'll be back in a little while, okay?" She said and gave her bison a weak hug.

Pepper growled at her, but Jinora hushed her. She put a finger to her lips.

"You have to be quiet, girl. Just relax here for a little while. I'll be right back," Jinora said.

Jinora stood up and jogged up the hill. She forced the thought of Pepper staying back all by herself to the back of her mind and focused on making her way up the mountain.

It was so dark it was nearly impossible to see where she was going. She tried to use the airflows to orientate herself, but the winds were so irregular and chaotic that it was no use. She stumbled over rocks several times.

A lighting struck far up the mountainside, making her surroundings light up for only a second. Jinora was so blinded that she couldn't see a thing, once the darkness settled again.

Turning back was no use. She had come this far and she was not going to give up now.

In her chest, the ache became constant. It pulsated within her. Made it harder to breathe and to move. She cried out as another explosion of electricity raced through her. Her feet were so numb, she felt like she was standing on needles. She tried to keep moving, but another wave raced through her and made her fall to her knees. Sharp rocks scraped against her skin.

The electricity kept exploding within her. She clutched the ground, tried to fight her way back up to her feet, but it was no use. She lost track of time. She started crying. It was completely hopeless. She wished she would just pass out, so she could have a break from the pain. All she needed was a break.

Through squinted eyes, she got a glimpse of a warm, yellow light, farther up in the dark. A tiny spark of hope erupted within her. It had to be the airship. They had come back. They had found her.

"Kai," she breathed. "Down here."

Another wave of electricity hit her. She could no longer keep her eyes open.

* * *

**A/N: **Woop woop, you made it through! You're awesome! xx


	6. Chapter 6 Circles

**A/N: **Hey, I'm back early! Thank you so much to everyone who keeps giving me feedback! You guys make me so happy! I'm getting really into this, so writing was a breeze! There is quite a lot happening though, so I really hope this doesn't feel rushed or anything. Anyway, hope you enjoy chapter 6: In which Jinora meets a couple of dodgy dudes with funky OC names, and Kai has brilliant bison skills. xxx

* * *

**Chapter 6. Circles**

Waking up was like pulling herself out of clay. Jinora's muscles were so sore and stiff that even opening her eyes was exhausting. In the dark in front of her, she could make out the red and yellow of a bon fire. The flames crackled quietly. The warmth had already warmed her up from her nightly adventure in her pajamas.

Jinora lifted her head from the ground slowly, moaning at the sore pain in her neck. How long had she been out? Under her palms, she felt the soft fabric of a woolen blanket. As she sat up, another blanket fell from her shoulders and curled up by her hip. She rubbed her eyes with one hand, feeling very confused about the situation.

"Morning," a rough voice called out.

Jinora jumped. On the other side of the bonfire sat an old man. The flames lit up his weathered face and danced across his rough features. He was sitting completely still. Just looking at her.

"Who are you?" Jinora asked, surprised to hear how hoarse her voice sounded.

"My name is Tharron," he said and poked a stick into the fire. "I found you passed out farther down the mountain. Figured I couldn't leave you there to freeze to death."

"Thank you," Jinora said.

She couldn't hide how disappointed she was. Everything would seem so much simpler if Kai was here. If Kai was the one who had wrapped her up in blankets and waited for her across the fire.

"I'm Jinora," she introduced herself.

"I'm aware," Tharron said, still staring into the fire.

Jinora always forgot how easily recognized she was with the blue arrow on her forehead. She looked around, not knowing how to continue the conversation. It was still dark. The fire lit up the surroundings a bit. Though all she could see was the steep mountainside on their left, and a path that led down towards the sea to the right. Down towards where she left Pepper.

Jinora felt a sting of worry for her bison. She wondered how long she had been alone by now. That's when it struck her that Tharron had said "good morning".

"Wait, is it morning?" she asked breathlessly.

"Just passed five, I reckon," Tharron said, glancing at his wrist, where there was no watch. "It's hard to keep track of time during a spirit storm."

He knew about the storm. Jinora blinked at him, wondering exactly who he was.

"How're you feeling?" he asked.

"I'm okay," Jinora said, glancing down at her fingers. They were still trembling. She slid them under the blanket. Tharron didn't try to hide the fact that he had noticed.

"Doesn't seem like it," he said.

"What are you doing here? On this mountain I mean," Jinora asked, avoiding the subject.

Tharron smirked a little.

"Hiking with my son. He'll be around shortly."

Jinora frowned at him. Who would be out hiking in this darkness? And especially this close to all those lightnings.

The lightnings!

"Did the lightnings stop?" she asked, looking up.

"Yes, but only for a little while. Republic city is in the very eye of the storm."

"Do you know anything about it?" Jinora asked, sitting up more properly.

"I know a whole lot about it, actually," Tharron said and smirked at her again. "And to be honest, I thought you would as well."

Jinora blinked in confusion.

"What?"

"Everyone claimed you were so bright and in touch with the spirit world. I was sure you of all people would know."

"I haven't been able to meditate in a while," Jinora said, trying to find an excuse. "I - it's been a rough week."

"Hn," Tharron muttered. "The storm is caused by a dark spirit that's trying to go home. That's why the storm is centered here. Close to the spirit portal."

It was so simple that Jinora felt stupid for not figuring it out herself. Especially since this was pretty much exactly what Ikki suggested in the first place. Jinora made a mental note of giving Ikki credit for predicting the future once she got home.

"But how is it causing this storm?" Jinora asked, not expecting an answer. She had had her fair few encounters with dark spirits, and no one had affected the nature to this extent before.

"The spirit is shattered. It is sending out its energy to try and summon all the pieces. That energy is what's charging this storm," Tharron said.

Jinora briefly wondered how Tharron could possibly know all this, before she was grabbed from behind and gagged.

She yelped in shock and moved to bend the air around her, when the pain in her chest returned full force. Her cry was muffled by the tissue that was tied around her mouth. She fell over her knees. She feared she wasn't going to get enough air by just breathing through her nose. She had to calm down.

Meanwhile, someone was tying her hands at her back.

"Talon," Tharron said lowly. "I'm not sure that's necessary."

"We can't risk her leaving now," a much younger man said.

Jinora glanced up at him, tears forming in her eyes. He was in the middle of his twenties. He had the same kind of roughness to his face as his father, but he was much slimmer and handsome. His dark hair was curly, his eyebrows were pulled together in a deep frown, and his eyes were so dark they looked black.

Jinora said up shakily. Keeping to her airbender ways, she sat quietly and decided to let the situation unfold by itself. There was no way she could escape like this anyway. Not with her hands tied and her body threatening to break down at any time.

Talon sat down on the bare ground. Jinora got the feeling he had given up his blankets for her.

"I'm going to explain everything very simply," Talon said. He gave her a look that made it very clear that he was convinced she had no clue of what was going on.

"I already told her about the spirit, Talon," Tharron said.

Talon looked annoyed, but continued anyway. A vein started throbbing at the side of his head.

"So the spirit is trying to become whole again, so that it can go home," he said and arched his brows. "You with me?"

Jinora nodded her head.

"To be whole it needs a vessel. It needs someone to host all its pieces and take it back to the spirit world. We think that's the only place it'll be strong enough to merge into one single form again."

Chills ran down Jinora's spine as she slowly connected the pieces.

"Right now, several of those pieces has chosen you as the vessel. I take it you've been going through a lot of weird things lately? Maybe fever, trembling, hallucinations, uhm... uneasiness?" He sent her a curios look.

Jinora wondered how he expected her to answer while being gagged. Luckily, Tharron also shared that logic.

"Talon, get that off her," he said impatiently.

Talon scoffed and got up. Jinora breathed out in relief when he untied the tissue. She had to roll her jaws to get the feeling back.

"I've not been feverish," she started, "but I've had all the other things. Please, just tell me what is going on."

"Simply put, you are losing your mind to a spirit. It is taking over your body, and is calling for its other parts. That is what's causing all the symptoms you've been having," Talon said, sitting back down.

"The pain is caused by the same energy that is causing the storm," Tharron said, avoiding eye contact. "The spirit is creating a storm inside of you as well as out here."

Jinora looked from one to the other. It was too much. She was losing the one thing she had always been in control of. Her mind.

"Okay," she said. "So what you're saying is that this storm will end once the spirit is back in the spirit world?"

"Yes," Talon said.

"So all I have to do is take it home?"

"She's quicker than I thought she would be," Talon says.

Jinora ignored him.

"What happens if it doesn't get home?" Jinora asked, looking at Tharron.

"The end of the world," Tharron said, staring into the fire.

"The storm will only get worse. We have to act quickly," Talon said.

Jinora swallowed. She looked out across the sea. The lights of Republic city still shone brightly. The light of the portal was so close. A lightning struck across the black sky, just above them. Jinora jumped. The other two just watched her.

"It knows that you are here," Talon said.

Jinora swallowed hard.

"Then what are we waiting for?" she said.

* * *

Kai had never been a morning person. But now, in the pitch black of the storm, at six in the morning, he was nearly jumping up and down with pent up energy.

Asami had landed the airship by the harbor and was now lowering the ramp so that they could get out. Once Kai heard it make contact with the harbor, he burst out of the doors and ran up to the island. Korra and Tenzin followed closely behind.

Air nomads and a few of the airbenders on the island had already gotten up and where tiredly attending to their chores. Lanterns had been lit everywhere to give them light in the darkness.

Kai wasted no time in getting into the building where Jinora's family lived. He slammed open the doors, ran up the stairs and down the hallways until he reached Jinora's room.

He hesitated for only a second. What if she was still in there? He didn't want to scare her. He collected himself, tried to calm down, before he gently opened the door.

The warm light from the hallway seeped into the dark room.

The bed was empty.

The window was open.

The white curtains where dancing in the irregular wind.

Jinora was nowhere in sight.

Kai felt his knees weaken under him.

"Is she there?" Tenzin called once he and Korra reached him. Kai stepped aside and let them look for themselves.

"Dad?" The tired voice of Meelo rang out into the hallway.

"What's going on?" Ikki asked, standing besides her brother. They were both dressed in pajamas.

"Tenzin?" Pema called and walked out of the master bedroom farther down the hall. "What's the matter? Is it Jinora?" she asked worriedly and pushed past Meelo and Ikki.

"Pema! Where is she?" Tenzin asked and grabbed his wife by the shoulders.

"Do you mean she's not in bed?" Pema asked, her voice gettig high pitched.

Behind them, Korra grabbed Kai's shoulder forcefully, hoping to prevent him from blowing up or rushing out without a plan. Kai was grateful. Though he felt more like passing out than blowing up.

"Ikki, Meelo, do you know where your sister is?" Tenzin asked hurriedly. Pema raced into Jinora's bedroom to investigate herself.

"Maybe she's on the toilet?" Meelo suggested with the shrug of his shoulders.

"Or maybe she's feeding the bison? Reshelving the library? Meditating? Writing poems?" Ikki suggested at a high pace.

"Is that something she does often?" Korra asked, frowing at the poem part.

"Or maybe she's just out being totally depressed cause she's been missing Kai so much," Ikki said, leaning back on her heels with an innocent look on her face. "She's been doing that a lot."

"No. Tenzin," Pema said stepping out of Jinora's bedroom. "Jinora's been really ill. She's been in pain and I didn't know how to help her, and I still haven't been able to reach Katara, and I planned on getting the doctor today, but..." Pema trailed off when her eyes started watering and her voice failed her.

"It's not your fault, Pema," Tenzin said and hugged her tightly.

Next followed an agonizing long morning of explaining to everyone what had happened to Jinora. Once everyone knew, they split into teams to search for her all over the Island. Naturally - something Kai felt like he had known all along - Jinora was nowhere to be found.

When everyone met up by the temple again, Tenzin was looking even more stressed out.

"No one found her?" he asked. Everyone shook their heads.

"But where could she be?" Ikki asked.

Kai felt like he was plummeting into an endless darkness. Everything was so hopeless. How were they going to find her in this darkness? How where they going to stop the spirit? How were they going to do anything?

A lightning struck on the other side of the sea, towards the south east. Kai felt his anger starting to take over again. He was so tired of the lightnings. So tired of the darkness. So tired of the winds. So tired of the spirit storm.

"You said the spirit is trying to call all its pieces together, right? And that it is using the lightnings?" Opal asked, looking towards where the lightning had struck.

"Yes," Korra said, turning towards the same direction.

"I think I know where she might have gone," Opal said.

Everyone moved very quickly after that. Kai was just praying to whoever was listening that Jinora didn't do anything stupid before he got to her.

* * *

"All you have to do is go up there," Talon said, pointing to the top of the mountain - where a lightning had just struck.

Jinora bit down on the insides of her cheeks. It was a terrible idea to walk up to where the lightnings kept striking, but Tharron said that was where the spirits energy was strongest, alas that was where she was most likely to be able to collect all the pieces and get this over with.

Jinora's worries were many, but her sense of responsibility was stronger.

"And you're sure that once it is inside me, it'll go straight to the portal?" Jinora asked for the third time.

Talon sent her an impatient look.

"Yes. That's the whole reason it is calling you."

"And I'll be fine afterwards?" Jinora asked, wishing that she could seem braver.

"You're the only one strong enough to do it," he said.

Jinora felt like he was avoiding the question, but didn't say anything. She was feeling so conflicted. She was usually so sure of herself, so sure of what was right and wrong. But after so many days without meditation and sleep, she felt like a melting candle. Like there was a fire inside of her, and that she was constantly melting away.

"This is the quickest way to end this, for the whole world, and for you," Talon said and eyed her. "Can I trust you to do the right thing?" he asked, staring at her with intense eyes.

Jinora didn't know what else to say. She nodded her head. Felt numb as she did so.

"What if I can't make it up there?" Jinora asked, thinking about the pain that kept crushing her from within.

"The spirit will find you," Talon said.

"What about you and your father? Will you be safe?"

"We'll take care of ourselves," Talon said and untied her hands.

Jinora had to massage her wrists. The ropes had left red marks on her skin. Her tremble had gotten even worse by now. Talon shoved a lantern into her hands and held up a piece of chalk.

"When you're up there, draw three circles around yourself with this," He said and handed it to her.

Jinora held it up and examined it with tired eyes. "What's so special about this?"

"It's... eh, blessed," Talon said.

He cleared his throat when Jinora gave him a puzzled look. There was something really weird about Talon. Jinora got the feeling he wasn't telling the whole truth. Even the chalk was a secret too big for him to spill.

"You're saving the world, Jinora," Talon said and stepped backwards.

Jinora watched him.

"How do you know all this?" she asked.

"For the love of- There's no time," he said forcefully. "You have to go!" He threw out his hands and looked frustrated. The vein kept pulsating at the side of his face.

Jinora took a deep breath. Her bare feet felt so sore already. Her pajamas was so thin and the wind was so harsh. Yet, she was driven forwards by a force from within her.

She started walking. The mountainside was steep, but not too hard to climb, even though it was impractical with the lantern. She chose the easiest route she could find.

The skin under her feet and her palms got scraped up quickly, but she couldn't stop. She had to get up there. Even if she was getting the feeling it wasn't her decision to do so anymore.

One more lightning struck down in the top of the mountain. Jinora jumped into a tiny pocket in the mountain, and pulled her legs up to her chest. The thunder that followed was so loud that it hurt her ears. She covered them with her hands, forsaking the lantern by her feet.

What was she doing? How could this be the only way to save the world? She took three deep breaths before she dared to stand up again. She put a hand to the mountain side to stabilize herself and nearly cried out when she saw her skin.

It was like in her dream. Starting from her fingertips, her veins turned black. She shook violently. Felt paralyzed. Watched as the black raced up her arms and reached her chest. She held up the collar of her shirt and watched as the black covered her entire body.

She was sure she could feel them now. All the separated pieces of the spirit inside of her, fighting for her awareness. She breathed in slow, raspy breaths of air.

There was only one way to stop it. She had to face her nightmares. She had to keep climbing.

* * *

Lefty was stressed. And it was because of Kai.

He hadn't even bothered to saddle up. He just jumped onto Lefty's back and gave the command. He wanted to tell Opal not to when she climbed on after him, but forced himself to see reason. He needed help. The fact was that he and Opal were a good team. They had a good chance of finding Jinora together.

Tenzin took the others on Oogi. Kai was grateful. He couldn't take the constant debate in the group anymore.

"Kai, are you okay?" Opal asked, breaking the tense silence Kai was creating.

He was sitting on his knees on Lefty, gripping the fur so tightly his knuckles turned white.

"No," Kai said. "It's like I'm feeling all the bad emotions all at once."

Opal put on a worried face. She probably knew there was nothing she could say that would help him feel better. Kai felt bad for putting her in that situation. For her sake he loosened his grip on the fur and sat back with his legs crossed.

"It's ironic," he said. "This all started with me wanting to get back to doing peace missions, like we used to do together. That's exactly what I got."

"Kai," Opal said. "You never wished for this."

"No, but she didn't want me to leave. I shouldn't have left her here," he said. "She had a nightmare the night before we left. I didn't think much of it then, but now I'm starting to think maybe that was the beginning."

"None of us could have known that. We didn't even know what we were up against."

"No, but..."

"So just shut up," Opal said sternly and punched him in the arm. "You know you're not helping anyone by blaming yourself. Now let's focus on finding her."

Kai rubbed the sore spot on his arm.

"But how? I can barely see the sea under us," Kai said, squinting in the direction where the lightning had struck. The city light cast a faint light over the horizon of the mountain, but that was it. He couldn't even remember which one of the tops the lightning had struck.

Suddenly, an idea struck.

"Ikki said that Pepper was gone, right?" Kai suddenly asked.

"Yes?"

"Hey, Lefty!" Kai said, and leaned over Lefty's ear. "Can you maybe find Pepper's scent?"

Lefty growled something that sounded positive to Kai. Then Lefty took a sharp swing to the left and flew them farther out into the sea.

Behind them they could hear the confused growl of Oogi. Kai turned to check if they were following them. They were thankfully right on their tail.

"Lefty's caught the scent of Pepper!" He called out to them, not sure if they would be able to hear him or not.

Only five minutes later, Lefty and Oogi landed on a grassy hill on the mountainside. Kai and Opal slid off at once, and just as they had hoped, there was Pepper. She had concealed herself between a group of trees.

Kai approached her quietly. She must've been spooked by the lightning and the thunder.

"Hey, girl," he said softly.

She seemed to recognize him and waddled carefully out of the trees. Leaves fell over her as she moved towards Kai. She pushed her big snout against him, and Kai suspected that she had been out here for a long time.

She was wearing her bridle. Jinora had meant to go out here.

"Do you know where Jinora is?" he asked, stroking the side of Peppers head.

She growled weakly and turned her massive head towards the mountainside. A tiny path was leading up towards the top of the mountain. Kai couldn't believe Jinora would go up there, but what other lead did they have?

"Is she okay?" Opal asked as she approached them.

"Yeah, she's just spooked," Kai said and turned to the others.

"Is that Pepper?" Tenzin asked and hurried over to them.

"Yes, I think Jinora left her here and continued up on her own," Kai said and looked up at the steep hillside.

"Just your average midnight-midstorm mountain hiking," Bolin said.

"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's fly up there and get her," Korra said.

* * *

Jinora was so afraid that the lightning might strike again. She was at the top of the mountain. At last. The ground was only stone. It was a wide, slightly tilted surface. One wrong step and she feared she would be falling to her doom.

She wasn't even sure she would be able to airbend at this point.

She was panting as she drew the first circle with the special chalk Talon had given her. As she did, she was constantly reminding herself that she had to do this. It was the only right thing to do.

A nagging feeling in the back of her head, told her that if she needed to convince herself it was the right thing - was it really?

The winds seemed to come from every angle. She was so cold by now, that her tremble had spread to her entire body. Her fingers were numb. The black veins were even more visible as all color left her ice cold skin.

Her pajamas was dirty and ripped on her knees. Her hair was windswept. Her eyes were sore from squinting so much.

Next to her stood the lantern. The light in it was getting weaker. Jinora suspected that the oil was running out. It was best to speed things up a bit.

She drew the second circle just inside the first one. And then the last one inside the second one.

A lightning struck at once. Jinora jumped to her feet; her heart racing inside of her. She dropped the chalk, but paid no mind to where it went. From the light of the lantern, she could only just make out a dark silhouette, standing on the neighbor top in front of her - only about twenty meters away. It was tall as a building and haunched over. Strangely shaped.

It was standing so still. Like a wolf, watching its pray.

Jinora fought the urge to run away. It was gonna be fine. She just had to stand there a little while more.

It moved without sound. Leaped effortlessly from its top to the one Jinora was on. Jinora was paralyzed as it hovered over her. She could see shades of purple, shining in the light of the lantern. The spirit looked like it was made out of a million diamonds. Or was that all the pieces it had been split into?

"Let go of all fear, let go of all fear, let go of all fear," Jinora ranted under her breath. She stared the spirit right into its shiny black eyes. Waiting for it to do whatever it was it needed to do.

* * *

"Look!" Opal shouted over the wind.

A small light at the top of the mountain. It flickered in the darkness, but Kai knew. It had to be her.

"Down there!" He shouted, hoping that Tenzin and the other's could hear him over the loud wind.

Lefty dove into the air. Pepper followed closely.

Behind him, Kai could hear Tenzin shouting something, but it was too hard to make out the words. He was too dead set on reaching Jinora before something bad happened.

They came closer and closer. Kai could make out her slim figure now. Her white pajamas. Her bare feet. Her brown hair. She was staring at something far above her. She looked hypnotized.

"What is that?" Opal asked in a frightened voice.

Kai followed Jinora's eyes. It was hard to see at a distance, and especially in the darkness, but as they got closer, Kai could see it. The spirit. The giant spirit from the mural. Hanging over her, like a beast, ready to charge its prey.

He didn't have time to plan it, he just leaped. The exact thing he probably shouldn't have done. He could hear Opal cry out for him, but it was too late. He pulled out the wings on his suit and cut through the winds like a knife.

The ear deafening sound of thunder rumbled through the sky. Kai had a second to worry that this impact might break every bone in Jinora's body, before he crashed into her, grabbed her waist, rolled over the edge of the mountain, and fell into the air on the other side.

He grunted in pain as he landed on Peppers back. The fur was soft and cool. The bison flew away fast. Kai panted. His heart beat frantically. He could swear he could feel it all the way up in his throat. He looked back at the mountaintop. He couldn't see the spirit. Was it gone? Had it given up?

Korra jumped off of Oogi and landed on the mountaintop, ready to battle the spirit, but it seemed to have vanished.

Kai turned to look at Jinora.

A cold feeling of despair filled him at the sight of her. She was lying completely still in his arms. Her skin was white. Her collarbones were exposed with black veins zigzagging across her skin. Kai reached out and grabbed her hand, felt dizzy when he saw the veins had turned black there as well. He entwined his fingers in hers, watched as they trembled over his knuckles.

"Jinora?" he said softly. "Jinora, I'm back."

He lifted her trembling hand to his lips and kissed her fingers tenderly. He felt his own walls crumbling down inside him. He wanted to cry out at the top of his lungs. What if she didn't wake up? What if she hit her head when he plunged into her?

What if he had killed her by trying to save her?

"Kai?"

Kai nearly jumped at the sound of her voice. He expected to see her brilliant, brown eyes. The kind, loving expression she always sent him. But instead, her eyes were black. There was no white, no shades of brown. Only black.

She looked completely inhuman.

"You're back," she said and closed her eyes. Turned her head to weakly nuzzle into the crock of his neck.

Kai couldn't move. He felt frozen to the bone.

All the way back to the island he held her close to him, while his heart beat just as frantically as when he jumped through the air to save her.

He was too late.

* * *

**A/N: **BAM BAM BAAAAAAAM


	7. Chapter 7 Love

**A/N: **HEEEY *awkward silence* I'm sorry. I've been busy. This one's for everyone who's been missing some fluff.

* * *

**Chapter 7. Love**

Thunder roared from the sky. The storm constantly shifted from rain to hail, and then back to rain.

Kai couldn't remember getting Jinora inside. He just knew that he did. He had carried her limp form in his arms, and raced up every staircase and down every hallway until he reached her bedroom, where he gently put her down. Then he got pushed aside and hauled out of the bedroom by Opal, who said something about Pema needing to have a look at her.

Kai caught a glimpse of Pema's robes and Ikki's brown hair as they both ran into the bedroom and slammed the door shut behind them.

Mindlessly, he fought against Opal's arms. He was about to break out of her grip, when the others came running down the hallway.

Kai gave up his struggle. It was like his heart finally started pumping blood into his head again. Opal relaxed her grip on him and stepped back.

"Where is she?" Tenzin asked.

Opal just pointed at Jinora's door. She was completely out of breath.

Tenzin slipped into Jinora's bedroom.

"Honey, can you hear me!" Pema cried out, just as the door opened. Their voices was muffled once Tenzin shut it behind him.

Kai was sure the temperature of his blood dropped several degrees. His entire body felt cold as ice.

"Hey," Korra said and squeezed Kai's shoulder. He barely felt it. "You did great, Kai."

It was meant to make him feel better, to make him feel like he had done everything he could. Kai didn't feel anything at all.

He couldn't hear much of what the others said next. Asami wanted to plan out a strategy in case the Spirit came back, and Mako wanted to involve the police, so they better could protect the city from the storm. Everyone had something to say, but Kai was just standing there, feeling like he was floating between the floor and the ceiling.

What would he do if she was gone? What would Pema and Tenzin do? And Ikki and Meelo; and little Rohan?

If Jinora was gone, who would help him train? Who would be waiting for him, no matter where he went? Who would he be close to when he felt alone? Who would still need him?

He was sickened by his selfishness. If Jinora died tonight, she would never get the chance to travel all over the world, like she dreamed of. She would never live to see her siblings get their tattoos. She would never get the chance to have her own family. She had so much left to do, and she wouldn't get the chance to even try.

"Kai, are you okay?" Opal said.

"Little bro, you look really pale," Bolin said.

"Oh no. He's falling!" Asami called out.

His body felt heavy, as he fell through the air. Opal, who still stood closest to him, caught him just in time. He felt the cool floor under him, before everything went black.

* * *

Someone far away gasped.

"Jinora! Mom, she's waking up! MOM! DAD!"

It was the unmistakable sound of Ikki's voice. Jinora felt like she was hearing her little sister from miles away, yet her high ptiched voice stung like needles in her ears.

"Ikki, shush," Jinora said. Her voice was nothing but a whisper.

"Jinora!" Ikki threw herself over Jinora's body.

Jinora flinched. Every inch of her was numb. A thousand needles started picking all over her skin as Ikki pressed herself against her.

"You're alive!" Meelo cried out from seemingly no where, and flung himself onto the bed. He crawled up against the wall and snuggled against Jinora's shoulder.

Jinora tried to breathe through the pain.

"What happened?" she asked under her breath. "Where am I?"

"You're home," Meelo said.

"Don't you remember? You went out in the storm and nearly got fused with the dark spirit," Ikki said and grabbed Jinora's cheeks. "Are you okay?" she asked, staring deep into her sisters eyes.

Jinora wanted to say yes, but she wasn't. Everything felt wrong. Her skin felt too tight around her. Her eye sight was blurry. She could hear her own heartbeat - and it still beat in the wrong rhythm. Everything was wrong.

But then she noticed the redness in Ikki's eyes and the obvious lines of tears on Meelo's cheeks.

"I'm fine," Jinora said. "Wait, how do you even know about the spirit?"

"Dad and the others kidnapped a crazy old munk that was part of the movement that set it free and they purposely sent it to you because you're the only one who can get it home before it destroys the whole world," Ikki said in one breath. "Oh, yeah, and I was right all along, by the way. How 'bout that?" she grinned weakly, trying to to make the moment feel more normal.

Jinora took a moment to grasp it all. "Someone sent it after me?" she repeated.

"I think it's best we get mom and dad," Ikki said, eyeing Meelo.

"I'll get them! Just stay here," Meelo said and jumped out of the bed.

"No problem," Jinora said, and tried to put on a relaxed face for Ikki's sake.

* * *

Kai woke up to a silent, dark room he recognized as his own. For a moment he relaxed, thinking it was just another normal night.

But that was until a lightning lit up his entire floor. He jolted up in bed as the thunder rumbled through the clouds. He pulled the curtains aside and felt his heart beat twice as fast as he realized that what he thought had been a nightmare, was reality; and it was far from over.

He reached out to flip on the lamp on his night stand. The light cast strange shadows across the floor and made him feel even more uneasy.

He wanted to move, to do something but found himself unable. He sat like frozen in his bed, blankets tangled around his legs. What if she was gone by now? Was it better to just stay put and hope for someone to come with good news?

Kai caught sight of himself in the mirror across the room, as lightnings struck over and over again outside. His hair was wilder than ever. His eyes were filled with the the fear he was trying to contain. He looked terrible to say the least.

He jumped at the sound of voices in the hallway.

"He's in his room," he heard Korra's muffled voice say.

Kai braced himself. The tears were already welling up.

The door slid open. Korra held it open for someone.

For Jinora.

She stepped into the room. Korra slid the door shut behind her. No one said anything. Jinora stared at him, and Kai stared at her. It was so quiet between them that Kai could hear Korra's footsteps as she walked down the hallway.

Jinora was dressed in her airsuit. She must've taken a bath, cause last time Kai saw her she was covered in dirt. Now she was clean, smelled like cherries and had even fixed her hair.

Kai stood up clumsily and stumbled in the blankets in the process. He felt light headed.

"You're..." he started, but the words didn't come out. He wanted to rush to her and hug her as tight as he could, but she looked so sad. Her eyes were red, her skin was pale. Her shoulders were slouched forward.

After a moment of silence, she broke the eye contact.

"I'm sorry," she said and fixed her eyes on something on the floor.

Kai couldn't piece it together. Why was she sorry? Why was she sad? She was alright. They were together. Everything was going to be fine.

"Please, say something," she said again, sniffling her nose.

"What?" Kai muttered. It dawned on him that he had yet to say anything at all. "I ca-."

"I didn't know what would happen. I just felt like I had to..." she reached up to cover her lips. Once her shoulders started shaking, it was like something snapped in Kai and finally he could act like a rational human being again.

"It's not your fault," he said and grabbed her with both hands. He pulled her close and held her as tightly as he dared. She wrapped her arms around his waist and held on for dear life.

"No one blames you. How could you even think that?" Kai said and kissed her cheek, her temple and the top of her head over and over again.

"I've been so stupid," Jinora said, pressing herself against him. "I knew something was wrong, but I didn't take it seriously."

"I'm just so happy you're okay," Kai said and held her face in his hands. He pulled away ever so slightly to get a proper look at her. "You look exhausted. Are you okay to be out of bed?" he asked.

Jinora blinked away a few tears, but smiled nevertheless.

"I'm fine," she said and swallowed. "Well, almost fine."

"Almost?" Kai repeated, and tilted his head to the side when she tried to break the eye contact again.

"Most of the spirit is already bound to me. None of us knows how to stop it, and... it's not going to stop, Kai. It's going to keep coming after me until I've taken it home," Jinora said.

Kai shook his head.

"We'll find another way," he said.

He grabbed her hand and brought it up to his lips. He kissed her fingers gingerly and wished that there wasn't an ever growing storm outside that needed to be stopped.

"What's this?" he asked when he spotted the dark, vein like lines on her knuckles. "And are you cold? You're trembling."

Jinora pulled her hand out of his and looked embarrassed.

"It's something to do with the spirit. I don't know why it happens but it was worse an hour ago, so I think it's getting better."

"Does it hurt?" Kai asked.

"No."

"Wierd," Kai said and put his hand back to her cheek.

He stroke her skin gently with his thumb. He felt like he had somehow forgotten how beautiful her eyes were, and how downright gorgeous she had become.

"I love you so much," he blurted out. He blinked afterwards, unsure whether he had actually said it or just thought it. Judging from the look on her face, he guessed it had been quite audible.

"I love you too," she said, almost immediately.

Kai got the feeling this was something she had been waiting for. The sadness washed away form her face, and that very same sweet smile that he had grown to love appeared on her face.

The room felt so much warmer once Kai closed the gap between them. He kissed her gently at first, but the worry and fear that had bottled up inside of him the last days quickly turned into passion. When she wrapped her arms around his neck, he let go of her face and slid both hands around her waist. He was swept by the idea that if he just kept holding her like this, nothing, and especially, no spirit, could possibly take her away from him.

Not even when they were both completely out of breath, and their lips started to feel swollen, did they break apart. It was like they both felt the need to make up for all the lost time. Kai only knew that he was desperate to be with her. She was the one who was in life threatening danger, yet he was the one who needed her to feel safe.

"Come here," he breathed between kisses, and led her to the bed. They sat down, almost without taking their lips off of each other.

Kai leaned back on one hand and broke the kiss to trail kisses down her jaw and neck. Her warm breath on his cheek gave him more confidence, and he reached up to pull the collar of her airsuit down, so he could fit more kisses onto her skin. Meanwhile, he was planning how to get the entire garment off of her.

However, his fantasies would simply have to remain fantasies for now.

"I've missed you so much," Jinora forced the words out, still out of breath. "But we can't do this now."

Kai froze with his lips still on her skin. The lust sunk like a rock in his stomach. With the utmost self control he managed to pull away from her to meet her apologetic eyes.

"Right. The storm," Kai said and looked down. He felt ridiculous.

"It's just that I'm not... I'm not okay. I don't feel like myself," Jinora said, looking down at her lap. "I just want the first time to be -"

"I get it," Kai cut her off and kissed her cheek. "We'll celebrate when all this is over."

"That sounds nice," Jinora said. But the sad look from before was back in her eyes.

Kai wrapped his arm around her shoulders and nuzzled her hair, wishing there was a way to make her feel better.

"What time is it?" He asked suddenly.

Jinora laughed under her breath. "It's seven in the evening. And, yes, you've missed dinner."

"Oh, no!" Kai exclaimed and couldn't help but laugh at such a minor problem.

* * *

**A/N: **Already mapping out the next chapter. I think there's only gonna be two or three more, so shit's gonna hit the fan next time. I really hope this wasn't too bad, and I hope you guys are still with me! I love you so much! Peace xxx


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